Selfsufficientish.com

A nice point, and I'm glad to see it made.

Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

An unfortunate translation, and one of many (I collect them). The word dominion is the translation of the hebrew word radah I think, which actually means ruler but has implications of care and responsibility too. Custodianship might have been a better word!

Yes, sad to say that Christianity does not seem to put a high priority on the "custodianship" bit, but that above refernce seems to have been used as justification for r*pe and pillage!

Nev

Bother! First checked out this thread too late to share the 'one Accord' joke.

I agree with the other views here about custodianship/stewardship. That is my philosophical basis for remaining green. The earth is the Lord's and we don't want Jesus returning to find myself 'red-handed' in squandering all that he's given me to look after. (My practical training came from my late mother who recycled/re-used every bit of paper, plastic, string, rubber band, etc that came her way.)

I do not know the background to the WWJD question. At first it may seem an irrelevant question if we looked at the historical Jesus, but it might well be that it was started by some Christians who are keen to apply biblical teachings to the contemporary world. To put Jesus in the frame as such is merely a short-cut way of saying 'how do we live like Jesus would have lived?'.

Perhaps in a situation where a car is of some necessity at least some of the time, then the question is justifiable and I wouldn't dismiss that question outright. It is not hyprocrisy on the part of these Christians. But at the same time it is also more an issue of how we use a car.

Do we plan our shopping or drive to the corner shop? (I have neighbours who send their children to school in their cars and trucks -- 300 yards down the road! I'm not joking.) Do we car pool or even offer to do the shopping for our elderly neighbours? What about Christians I know who run a free 'taxi service' for people who make use of the local hospice services once a week?

As a single woman I was always thankful for Christians who bothered to go out of their way to make sure I got home safely, especially at night. My (husband's) car now sits on the drive most of the time as I have once again reverted to walking whenever possible but the car is necessary when a young son (too old for pushchair, too young for a bike) or heavy shopping are involved.

It is true, of course, that there are also many Christians who have yet to understand this idea of stewardship of the earth. Now if us Christians are so perfect, we wouldn't have needed Jesus, would we? Please be patient with us.

Thinking about this thread it occurred to me that different people have different approaches to living ethically. All of us here give a lot of emphasis to sustainability and stopping or reversing damage to the environment. But other people give more time to helping other people by for example working in charity shops and soup kitchens, or doing VSO or choosing a career such as medics or teachers. Still others put emphasis on changing the world for the better through activism, by protesting and collecting petitions, writing to their MP, direct action and other political activities. And there are lots of other ways to live an ethical thoughful life.

Of course there are people, perhaps the majority, who go through their lives without giving any thought at all to living ethically. It's just not on their radar. But don't assume that everyone who isn't overtly "green" is less ethical than someone who is. I don't think Mother Teresa had a compost heap but I wouldn't like to put myself up against her in the ethical stakes.

Fair point Chickpea, fair point!

Nev

yup - seconded!!!

An interesting take on the WWJD is here : http://www.annieporthouse.com/ - very interesting site!!

It seems that this point is being taken up by the media and churches are falling into line with environmental thinking.

Look what I found! A whole article on the subject, including in-depth analysis. :D

Wulf

Wow Wulf, well done!

Nev

I don't follow any religion but if I had to guess what Jesus would drive today I would say a pick up truck. Wasn't he a carpenter before the savior title?
I remember seeing the tshirts and bumper stickers several years ago that said WWJD, but some kids turned it to mean, We Want Jack Daniels. Jack Daniels is a liquor made here in the US. After that, the interest soon declined.
Concerning George Bush, he scares me, but most politicians scare me. IMO, big business is what runs America, not the people. It doesn't matter who is in office here, their voting decisions are made according to who pays them the most money.